Buildings flattened as 7.3 magnitude earthquake hits Vanuatu

A powerful 7.3 earthquake hit Vanuatu on Tuesday, sparking a network outage, crushing vehicles and damaging multiple buildings, including a complex in the capital Port Vila that hosts the diplomatic missions of Western nations including the United States.

The quake struck 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) west of the Pacific island nation’s capital at about 57.1 kilometers (35.5 miles) deep, shortly after noon, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). It was followed by a 5.5 aftershock.

With communications down, the official death toll was not immediately known. But at least one person was killed, according to relief agencies, citing preliminary reports from the ground and local media.

The quake caused buildings to collapse, crushing cars, with some feared to be trapped under the rubble. Landslides occurred near an international shipping terminal at Port Villa, blocking access, according to Reuters.

Hours after the quake hit, crowds began to form outside a hospital waiting to be treated, according to the Associated Press, citing footage from national broadcaster Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation, whose website had gone offline.

Multiple social media videos geolocated by CNN showed damage to a red and blue building that houses the US and other Western embassies. One section of the ground floor appeared to have partially collapsed, with debris strewn around the US embassy’s crest and several windows shattered.

“The US Embassy in Port Vila has sustained considerable damage and is closed until further notice,” a spokesperson for the US Embassy in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea told CNN. “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this earthquake and the US government will work closely with our partners in Vanuatu.”

New Zealand’s foreign ministry confirmed to CNN that the building also houses its High Commission office and the embassies of France and the United Kingdom, saying it had “sustained significant damage.”

Vanuatu is home to about 330,000 people over a group of 80 islands.

Katie Greenwood, a Fiji-based regional head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said the damage was widespread, including collapsed buildings in downtown Port Vila and crippled infrastructure in provincial areas. Red Cross volunteers were ready to help affected communities, she said.

At least one person had died in a hospital, she added, citing preliminary information from her team on the ground and local media reports.

“For the Pacific, it’s the worst … I have seen in terms of earthquake damage,” she told CNN.